Primally Yours: Office Foods and Scents

People will eat just about anything at the office

I’m always amazed at how quickly the most random food items will disappear when placed for sharing on the common kitchen counter at work. All sorts of sugary junk is gone almost instantly, whether you put it there first thing in the morning, or in the afternoon. Is there anything people won’t eat? I almost want to do some sort of experiment timing how long it takes for the consumption of various random food items. I don’t want to be too much of a hypocrite though, pre-paleo I would also frequently graze on the free food offerings. But now a) I don’t feel the need to snack while at work – in fact, I never bring anything to work other than my lunch, and 2) there’s literally nothing for me to eat. Usually it’s cookies, donuts, and pastries. Sometimes there’s fruit. The only thing that seldom appears that I’ll indulge in is nuts, but those show up every once in a blue moon. The kitchen counter is great, though, for re-gifting any non-paleo items that I receive. Instead of junking the non-paleo items, I can offload them at work. I’ve got mixed feelings about that, since these sorts of things really do belong in the garbage. However, I’ve never been a fan of wasting food – and if these people are eating this stuff regularly anyway, then why not make someone’s afternoon with a snack offering.

Breast cancer awareness via candy

Speaking of junk, have you seen those candy vending machines in support of breast cancer awareness? The one I saw dispensed nuts and M&Ms. How ironic. Or are M&Ms considered healthy now because there are nuts inside? What’s next, pop vending machines where a portion of your money goes towards cancer research? I suppose that would be somewhat fitting.

Fragrance free conferences

On a registration form for an industry conference I noticed it asked for people to not wear fragrances/perfumes. I think that’s awesome. Nothing is more distracting and annoying than having to sit in the proximity of someone who’s OD’d on perfume/cologne. Glad that it’s becoming a common thing to ask people to refrain from stinking the place up. Whether they’ll listen is another matter. It’s also great that a lot of workplaces have scent-free policies. It’s not only a matter of annoyance, since all those fragrances are simply toxic chemicals that we are inhaling. Even if you’re lucky enough to not experience headaches and other symptoms as a result of these toxins, they’re still really bad for you.